Self-protecting check.



A. J. FARMER.

SELF -PROTEGTING CHECK. APPLICATION Pump JUNE 29, 1909.

Patented July 18, 1911.

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To all, whom it may concern.'

. I jUNiTiiD sfrii'rss ra'rniir N ornioii. or enosfsiilioiivfrjs i l snLnrnoinorine Specification of Letters Patent.. Pai-,Q11{3Q-(1z Jiu'ly 18,: 1911.

. y Application filedll'uiiel 29, 1909, Serial No.'505,0754.". p

, Be itltiioyvn that I, AiriiiUR'J. FARMER, a citivien.` ofthe- United States, residing at' 4 (ilrosse Points Farms, in' the county of rayne and State of l\lichigaii, have in- Y vented certai-n neivv and useful Improveinei'its .lowing is a specification.-

in Se'lf-Protectiiig Checks, of which the fol- Y A.Myinvention relates in gener-al to bank checks and siuiilar instruments of n'ioiietary f value,.and more particularly .to the protec-V tion of checks aiid.such other instruments front alteration.

. of the check.

The subject `of loss through check-raising is of great interest and importance both to banks and to private individuals. The great convenience' of paying billsV and ina-king reniitta iice's by .'iiieans of vchecks has vlargely increased the use of checks', andhas simultaneously increased the number of altered checks andthe temptation to alter them. lt is unnecessary for a criminal who tainpeis With. checks to commit forgery asa cheek` for a small amount can be`l raisedtoan amount many times larger by skilful alterations of the inscriptions fixing the amountl In order to protect themselves against this danger of checkfraising,

Experience has, however, proven `that itis a great inconvenience to adjust such devices each time tl'iey are used, and totheii stamp each individualcheck. The use of such Clevices is coiisequeiith7 often neglectedor totally abandoned, owing to the time and trouble required in adjusting` and using them.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a cheek, or similar instrument,

which will ietpiire no extra labor on the part'- of the drawer, but the mere signing` of which will so iix the ii'iaxiinuin or 'limiting an'iouiit that the check cannot be'altered without erasiiig'tlie genuine signature and forging the saine at another place upon the check.

Iii carrying out my invention, I provide a' respect to the rest of the' check.

check having thereon a. plu r ality of signature spaces,V each space being' design-ated by a different maxiinuin'or .hunting-amount, so that the mere signing of the ,cheek by. the drawer 'definitely fixes. .the inaXiiiiuin--or limiting amount of the check to correspond to the denomination designated bythe space ,iii which the `signature is aflixed.. The signature spaces preferably have -deiinite locations with-respect to each .other aiid with The signature spaces also may have distinctive colors, such colors, so far as practicable, being preferably the saine as tlie. colorsof the .backs of the Government I bills of. oo rrespoiiclii-ig deAv iioii'iina-tions.

My invention ,will-be moref'ully ldescribed I hereinafter with reference to' thel accom,- panying. drawing, in Which the saine is illustrated. as embodied inv ttvo convenientv and practical foi-nis, and in Which .the figures illustrate the facesof'ttvo checkseinbodyling` inyinvention'. .v

vlteferring 4to Figure l, reference letter A indicates a bank check provided. with the usualinscriptions and usual spaces for the date', number,` payee, and amount of the check in numerals and Words, Located upon the cheek, in convenient relation-With' the above referred to usual inscriptions and spaces of an, ordinary cheek, are a lplurality of signature spaces, each space being designated byA a maximum or limiting inscription. These lsignature Spaces ,may be' con-- veniently arranged beneath a'ndatV the .right side of the check. Theliiniting inscriptions may be placed upon the spaces in convenient manner, such, for instance, asprinting the inscriptions on'the portions of the spaces over which the signature is to be placed, as

shown in Fig. l. Another conve-nient man-- nei' of placing the limiting inscriptions upon the signature spaces is to coloithe spaces, leaving the inscriptions in White, oiof the saine color vas-the paper on which the check is printed. l i

. In Fig. 2 B indicates the check, and Z) the limiting inscriptions in the several' signature spaces. In this embodiment of my inl,veiitioii the limiting inscription is printed beneath the line forsigiiature in each space..

An embodiment' of my inyentioii in its more specific aspect eonsistsin. coloring the spaces differently, so that different colors Will represent different limiting amounts. In a still more specific embodimentI .of my iiiies vention the' colors of the signaturel spaces may, so far as practicable, be the same as the colors of Government bills of denominations corresponding to the spaces so colored. For instance, in the space a', in Fig. 1, in which the limiting amount is Not over one dollar $1$ the color, is green, While in the space in which the limit-in inscription is Not over ten dollars $10 the color is yelloW. x v

Front the foregoing description-it iyill be observed thatv I have made an invention applicable to bank checks ,or similar instruments, by means of which the limitin or maximum amount is fixed by the mere ac oi signing the check', thereby obviatingthe trouble and inconvenience of, aiiixing to the lcheck a limiting or maximum amount. It will be further observed that a check embodying my in ventionjcannot be'altered Without first erasing the genuine signature and then forging the draWers name. The progressive' arrangement of the limiting amounts prevents theraising of the amount designated on the space to Which'the signature has been aiiixed, Without also raising the amounts inscribed upon the spaces following that on Which the signature has been affixed. y

It Will ofcourse be understood that my invention "is not limited to the specic'arrangements illustrated and described, biit is capable of being embodied in other forms, ie essential novelty of my invention residing in providing la-plurality of signature spaces designated by or representing dit'- ferent limiting or maximum amounts.

Vhile I have illustrated and described my invention as applied to 'a bankeheck, and

have used such term in my claims, yet I wish it toxbe understood that my invention is applicable not merely to bank checks, but to other instruments, such as promissory notes, d nits, money orders, dac..

I claim:

1.- A bank check having thereon. a plurality 'of separate signature spaces, eaeh` space -being designated by a diii'erent limiting amount placed upon the space itself.

2. A banlrcheck having thereon a plurality of signature spaces,'said spaces hav.

"ing on the portions thereof over which the 'signature 1s adapted to be aixedinscriptions of different limiting amounts.

3. A bank cheek having thereon the usual spaces appropriately designated for the date, amount, and payee, and also having thereon beneath and at one side of said spaces a" plurality of signature spaces appropriately designated to represent diiterent hunting l amounts. 

